Huffman girls, Mountain Brook boys advance to 6A state championship games
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBMA) — In the final day before state championship games get underway in Birmingham, the final four teams in 6A for both boys and girls took the floor.
SCHEDULE:AHSAA basketball state finals set to begin in Birmingham
Huffman 56, Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa 50
Huffman's quest for its first ever state title in girls basketball took another step forward Wednesday as the Vikings came from behind to take down Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa and secure a spot in the 6A state championship game against Hazel Green.
The Vikings (29-4) trailed by as many as 11 points and entered the final frame down by nine points. Huffman used an 8-0 run during the fourth quarter to push into the lead for good. The run was capped off by six straight points from Destinee Nelson including a jumper to give the Vikings the lead with 1:44 to go in the game.
Huffman held Hillcrest without a made field goal for the final five minutes of the game and made five free throws in the final 30 seconds to secure the win. The Vikings finished the game on a 13-1 run and outscored Hillcrest 22-7 in the fourth quarter.
The Patriots (27-6) scored the first nine points of the game and led for 30 minutes before Huffman completed the comeback. Hillcrest shot just 1-of-11 from the field and turned the ball over seven times during the fourth quarter.
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Tamira Jones led the Vikings with 21 points, scoring 13 in the second half. She also added five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Jamiria Jones contributed 16 points while making four 3-pointers. Nelson finished with 10 points. Alesha Canady led Huffman with 13 rebounds to go with nine points and four blocks.
Hillcrest was led by Blakeley Nixon's 21 points. Nyeishia Davis made three 3-pointers and scored 11 points while Jareah Branch finished with nine points and nine rebounds.
Huffman finished with 22 offensive rebounds, leading to 20 second-chance points. The Vikings also scored 14 points off 17 Hillcrest turnovers while the Patriots had just two points from Huffman's seven turnovers.
The championship game is scheduled to tip off at 12:30 p.m. Hazel Green has won five consecutive state championships and is coming off a 49-22 victory against McGill-Toolen in the semifinals.
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Mountain Brook 54, Paul Bryant 52
Fans at Legacy Arena nearly saw another comeback for the ages during the second 6A boys semifinal of the day. Mountain Brook saw a double-digit lead trimmed down to just two points and the Spartans needed one last stand from its defense to secure a spot in the state title game.
John Colvin, who spent most of the day doing damage on the offensive end of the court, blocked a 3-point attempt from Bryant's Eric Grant in the final seconds and Lawson Gardner secured the loose ball before dribbling out the rest of the clock and giving the Spartans the win.
Mountain Brook (26-7) led by 11 points with seven minutes to go in the game and still held a six-point advantage into the final minute but the Spartans had two turnovers in 23 seconds to leave the door open for Bryant.
The Stampede cut the lead to three points when Jaycob Johnson hit a 3-pointer with 48 seconds to go and again after the two teams traded a pair of free throws. Bryant had an opportunity to tie the game but missed two 3-pointers on the same possession before Mountain Brook secured the rebound.
The Spartans turned the ball over and Bryant made one of two free throws before grabbing an offensive rebound through a held ball whistle with seven seconds to go. Grant was forced to track down an errant pass off the ensuing inbounds pass before getting blocked by Colvin to end the game.
Colvin led all scorers with 16 points, making four 3-pointers in the win. He added three rebounds, one block and one steal in 21 minutes on the floor. Julius Clark added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Spartans.
Bryant (22-13) had four players reach double figures including Johnson who led the way with 15 on five 3-pointers. Marchello Perkins finished with 11 points, all coming in the second half including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.
Adrian Wooley neared triple-double territory, finishing with 14 points, six rebounds and seven assists to go with a pair of steals. Marquis Nash scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds before fouling out in the final minute.
Mountain Brook advances to Saturday's state championship game against Buckhorn. The game is scheduled to tip off at 2:15 p.m.